Attack On Hotel In Mali’s Capital ‘Under Control,’ Army Says

A hotel on the outskirts of Mali’s capital, Bamako, that’s popular with foreigners was attacked on Sunday, days after the United Nations chief warned that insecurity in the West African nation is spreading.

Special forces and soldiers were at the scene to assess the impact of the attack, police spokesman Kali Diakite said by phone. The attack occurred at Le Campement Kangaba and the situation is under control, army spokesman Diarran Kone said by phone. At least two people were killed, Agence France-Presse reported, citing the security minister.

Insecurity is spreading in Mali and across its borders as the number of militant attacks rose and new armed groups emerged over the past year, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a report published last week. Violent extremists carried out 201 attacks against the Malian security forces, UN peacekeepers and French troops since June last year, mainly in the north but increasingly in the center of the country, according to the report.

It’s the second time Islamist militants carry out an attack on a hotel in the capital, after gunmen stormed the Radisson Blu in November 2015, killing more than 20 people.

Mali has been gripped by violence since ethnic Tuareg rebels began an insurgency in the north of the country and joined forces with Islamist militants in 2012.